Described as an initiative for and by the community, the fourth Montréal Startup Community Awards honoured 16 individuals and groups for their work supporting the Montréal startup ecosystem throughout the year.
Over 300 peer nominations were received with a selection committee shortlisting five to 10 finalists for each category. The awards were handed out at the Gala de la Communauté Startup on December 1. Montreal NewTech organized the event along with the OSMO Foundation and Startupfest.
Puzzle Medical Devices, a startup building what it claims is the world’s first minimally invasive heart pump for patients with advanced heart failure, won Champion Startup of the Year, while Ora Medical took Rising Startup of the Year. The latter startup is developing a smart gait trainer to help rehabilitate patients with walking disabilities.
RELATED: Startup Montréal hosts 7th annual Grande-messe startup showcase
CAPSolar took home Startup-Company Collaboration of the Year for a project alongside la Société du parc Jean-Drapeau. CapSolar is developing an add-on solar module for low-speed electric vehicles that are meant to extend their range, and battery life.
Katy Yam of Real Ventures was named Connector of the Year. Yam is a partner at Real Ventures, and the general manager of FounderFuel. She sits on a number of company boards, including Front Row Ventures, and serves as a mentor at Techstars, among other community-focused work.
Daria Riabinina, the director of collaborative research at the Ministry of Economy, Innovation and Energy of Québec, was honoured as the Community Champion of the Decade. Riabinina has held a number of positions at the ministry, as the director of technology transfers, coordinator, and advisor in industrial research and innovation.
RELATED: Permalution, Magnestar, Ohh! Foods among winners of Startupfest 2022 pitch competitions
Liette Lamonde, managing director of Startup Montréal was named an ambassador of the year alongside Centech MTL leader Richard Chenier.
Winners are voted between a public, open-to-all vote, and a jury vote, with the latter composed of winners from previous years. The results of the vote are evenly split between the two to determine the winners.
Montreal NewTech (MNT) organized the first edition of the awards in 2017 with the OSMO Foundation. MNT describes itself as a community of innovation and technology enthusiasts, while the non-profit OSMO Foundation has various touchpoints in Montréal’s startup ecosystem. Startupfest joined the organizers of the awards in 2021.
Some 450 people in Montreal’s startup and innovation community attended this year’s awards.
The full list of award winners are:
Volunteer of the year: Annie Lamontagne, Laura Di Costanzo
Diversity champion: Groupe 3737
Corporate champion of the year: Banque Nationale du Canada
Young rising star of the year: Diana Horqque Ratto, Rosalie Simard
Connector of the year: Katy Yam
Mentor of the year: Martin Enault
Ambassador of the year: Richard Chénier, Liette Lamonde
Rising startup of the year: Ora Medical
Champion Startup of the year: Puzzle Medical Devices
Startup-Company collaboration of the year: CAP Solar by la Société du parc Jean-Drapeau (with the support of the City of Montréal / le Campus de la transition / L’Esplanade / Cycle momentum)
Community collaboration of the year: Coopérathon 2022 Desjardins / Montréal Newtech & Collision 2022 – Investissement Québec International / Desjardins Entreprises / Startup Montréal / Le Camp / Laval Économique / 2 Degrés / Bureau du Québec à Toronto / Granby Industriel / LOJIQ / Ville de Montreal / Bureau du Québec à Toronto / Flots / Cilex
Community champion of the decade: Daria Riabinina
Feature image courtesy OSMO.